By TCN Staff Reporter
Delhi: The Indian government no longer is of the opinion that Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) should be accorded Minority Status. In a substantial change in stance, the NDA government has withdrawn its name as one of the petitioners challenging the 2005 Allahabad High Court verdict which said the University had no right to reserve its seats for Muslims. The NDA government has in fact, told the Supreme Court that it supports the Allahabad HC verdict.
The UPA government had, along with the AMU administration, challenged the HC verdict and following this, the Supreme Court had in 2006 restored the minority tag to the University.
In February 2005, the Union Human Resource Development Ministry had allowed AMU to reserve seats for Muslims in post-graduate medical courses. On October 4, 2005, the single-judge verdict in the Allahabad HC declared this move as illegal.
Meanwhile VC of AMU Lt Gen Zameer Uddin Shah had promised to persue the case. In a report in the Times of India Shad said that “The minority character of the university is a matter of life and death – it concerns the education and advancement of the socially, economically backward section of Indian society, Muslims. The government has retracted from its earlier stand. We will fight our cause in court.” .
The case has been postponed for further hearing until April 4.